Model and actress Brooklyn Decker knows a thing or two about staying in head-turning (make that whiplash-causing) shape

Brooklyn Decker is having a moment—a rare one, to be exact. "Wow," she says, popping a couple of almonds into her mouth and rubbing the head of her bulldog, Billie Jean, in the Austin, Texas, home she shares with her husband, tennis star Andy Roddick. "I don't have a thing to do except relax."

Since the 25-year-old model added actress to her resume—she played Adam Sandler's girlfriend in last year's Just Go with It and this May stars in the alien-invasion epic Battleship and the comedy What to Expect When You're Expecting—she's been going nonstop. Juggling two careers, not to mention traveling the globe to watch Andy battle it out on the courts, usually leaves her in "a state of perpetual jet lag, which means there are days when working out is the last thing I want to do," she admits. But, she adds, acknowledging the importance of maintaining the body that has made her so famous, "If I stop wanting to work out, then I'm going to be in some serious trouble." Her solution is simple: Make fitness more fun.

Pretty much any workout expert worth her sports bra agrees: When you do physical activities you enjoy—and keep the mix fresh—you're much more likely to see exercise as positive, and stick with it, and get results.Take inspiration from these ways Brooklyn busts exercise boredom:

1/ Dance with the stars.
"Yesterday I returned from a trip to Australia and Munich, so I resorted to my secret, sure-fire method to get my body moving again. I blasted three Taylor Swift songs as loud as I could and started running in place and doing some stupid booty dancing. Sometimes I'll watch a music video of a great performer like Beyonce and try to follow her choreography. Yeah, maybe I look ridiculous, but dancing gets your energy up a lot better than running on a treadmill or pedaling a stationary bike."

2/Get lost.
Wherever she is, Brooklyn tries to run at least three times a week, doing three or four miles on each outing--and she turns the workout into a sight-seeing expedition. "I really love going places without a map," she says. "When I went running in Paris, I headed for a monument or a statue that I could see off in the distance. To get back where I started, I simply used the GPS on my phone."

3/ Paddle away stress (and calories).
Most sporting activities require skill and know-how, but there's one you can master right now. "Whenever I'm near a body of water, I love to rent a kayak. It's easy to use, and you not only get a cardio workout but also do a vigorous upper-body workout, pushing and pulling your paddle through the water. And let's face it: The view is always a lot better than the one you can get in a gym.""

4/ Create a social experiment.
Catching up with friends needn't always take place on a couch. "When I was a bridesmaid for my best friend's wedding in North Carolina, the two of us and the other bridesmaids hired a Pilates instructor to do a private class for us the morning of the wedding. We were able to play our favorite music and laugh and talk while working out. It was the perfect way to start a day, and ever since I've tried to come up with workouts that I can do with my girlfriends."

5/ Marry an athlete.
No proposals from U.S. Open champs yet? No problem. Just find a dude who likes to stay fit--it will help keep you motivated to work out. "One day when we were in London, Andy took me to a track behind a high school. We did a kind of hopscotch down the track, more drills over hurdles, and then shuttle runs," says Brooklyn. "Being married to Andy has given me a new appreciation for my body. He's taught me that it's not how thin you are that matters. It's how your body performs, how it endures wear and tear."

6/ Turn on the tube.
Many of us waste precious minutes (even hours) watching YouTube. (You know who you are, cute-cat-video lovers!) But the site is ideal when you're tired of your exercise DVDs. When Brooklyn is traveling, she brings her laptop and finds a YouTube yoga video for beginners. "It's a great way to deal with the stress that comes with being on the road," she says. "One of my favorite moves is to lie on the ground on my back, a yoga block propped under my lower back, and then pull my legs up while spreading out my knees, making my legs look just like a butterfly. The move opens up my hips and stretches my back at the same time."

7/ Make new friends.
Who needs cocktails? Brooklyn breaks the ice with a new acquaintance by taking a hike together instead. "You create a bonding experience that you never would have had," says Brooklyn, who took to the trails with her Battleship costars on set in Hawaii. "My hike with Taylor Kitsch [her love interest in Battleship] was very strenuous, and we needed ropes to get to the top of the summit. But when we were finished, we knew each other a lot better than if we had just had the usual dinner-and-drinks night. Plus, no matter how much time you spend in the weight room, you simply can't get a better workout for your legs than when you go for a long hike."

8/ Challenge yourself.
To get stronger, you have to keep things fresh. "My director on Battleship, Peter Berg, said that as much as I work out, he wanted me to be strong. He took me to a boxing gym in Santa Monica. After six or seven minutes of sparring, I was completely winded. But I was also exhilarated because it was a new workout that I had never before experienced. And it's one of the best deals you'll find. This place charges around $15 for an hour. You learn how to punch, and I promise, you and your muscles will never forget it."

9/ Keep it quick.
Brooklyn feels the way most of us do about toning our core: It doesn't exactly top her list of fun afternoon activities. But instead of groaning over the idea of 15 to 30 minutes of crunches every day, she breaks it down into seconds--60 seconds, as a matter of fact. "Seriously, I will drop to the floor and do a plank anywhere, anytime--in my kitchen, next to my bed, in a hotel room. Straight planks on my elbows or hands and then the all-important side planks and side plank crunches."

10/ Adopt a dog.
Brooklyn loves to play chase in the backyard with Billie Jean (named after one of Andy's fave tennis stars--minus the surname). "We essentially end up running wind sprints back and forth. And the best part of our routine is that she doesn't snap at me when I start to slow down."

Her Food Philosophy
To stay disciplined, Brooklyn focuses on what she should eat rather than what she shouldn't. "I try not to think about foods that are too fattening or too sugary. I always think about why it's important to eat the best foods," she says. "By not obsessing over the bad, I tend to stick with the good." A typical menu looks like this:

Breakfast 2% fat Greek yogurt mixed with blueberries (Brooklyn's fave superfood)Lunch Egg-white sandwich on an English muffin with goat cheese and mustard, or soup and a saladDinner Lean meat or tuna with veggiesSnacks A handful of almonds or cashews, hummus and pita, a granola bar, or raw veggiesDrinks Several glasses of water and a few cups of coffee

The One Sport She Won't Play
As much as Brooklyn loves being a courtside spectator, she refuses to join Andy on the tennis court. "He tried to give me a lesson once, and I ended up hitting all the tennis balls over the fence and smashing my racket because I was so frustrated," says Brooklyn. "I told him, 'You don't teach me how to play tennis, and I won't teach you how to model in a bathing suit.' And so far, it's worked."